Lenses for flashlights and other lighting units have been provided in a variety of forms, generally having in common a shape that is symmetrical about an axis along which the light is directed, e.g., the optical axis. Several such lenses have included a hole in a rear end of the lens adjacent a light source. Within the hole, the light source may be adjusted in position along the optical axis. Adjustment of the light source's position relative to the rear hole of the lens enables variance of a light beam emerging from a front face of the lens. Typically, lenses are limited in their capacity to combine a maximum intensity for a spot beam with a substantial uniformity for a wide beam.
Such lenses typically also were provided with a central convex lens surface on a front face combined with at least one additional convex surface where the light was either received into the lens, reflected within the lens, or emitted from the lens. Without being bound by theory, the additional convex surface may have been deemed necessary for a proper focusing of light from the source into a beam. Such lenses were alternatively provided with light-receiving, reflecting, and emitting surfaces that were flat as viewed in cross-section. Such flat surfaces were also likely deemed necessary for light-focusing or manufacturing purposes.